Device for cutting the wrapper leaves of cigars,cigarillos or like products



United States Patent Pierre Waegaert Bordeaux, France June 28, 1967 Nov.24, 1970 Service DExploitation Industrielle Des Tabacs et DesVallumettes Paris, France a French public establishment July 1, 1966France Inventor Filed Patented Assignee Priority DEVICE FOR CUTTINGTI-IE WRAPPER LEAVES OF CIGARS, CIGARILLOS 0R LIKE PRODUCTS 5 Claims, 6Drawing Figs.

U.S.Cl 83/171,

131/33 Int. Cl A24b 7/02 Field of Search 83/ 100,

171,177,510; 13l/33,34,35,Inq

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,449,445 3/1923 Rand 83/1712,086,238 7/1937 Platt 83/171 3,406,612 9/1968 Terzvoli 83/171 FOREIGNPATENTS 647,276 12/1950 Great Britain 83/171 Primary ExaminerAndrew R.Juhasz Assistant Examiner-Z. R. Bilinsky Attorney-Sparrow and SparrowABSTRACT: Device for cutting the wrapper leaves of cigars, cigarillos orlike products, comprising means for modifying the material of thetobacco leaf along a desired cutting line, said means beingjajdapted toproduce action without any counterpart on at least one of the faces ofthe tobacco leaf and to cooperate with means for holding said leaf inthe outspread position while producing action on at least a portion ofthe leaf surface which is located outside the zone of action of saidleafmodifying means.

Patented Nov. 24, 1970 I I 3,541,908

Sheet 1 0f 3 Fig.2

M/VfNTOR PM rre. U aagaert sPau-row anJ D Parrou Patented. Nov. 24, 1970Sheet I III/VENTOR v errc U a eg ATToRneyg Patented Nov. 24, 19703,541,908

Sheet 3 of 3 I'NVENTOR k'n-P J-aegaert 8) 5 'rrow anJ U dwou ATToRweYsDEVICE FOR CUTTING THE WRAPPER LEAVES OF CIGARS, CIGARILLOS OR LIKEPRODUCTS In nearly all machines' for making cigars and like products,the system employed for cutting the wrapper leaves (outer leaves andsometimes binder leaves) from selected tobacco leaves is made up of thesame elements, namely a perforated table provided with suction holes forthe purpose of spreading out the tobacco leaf perfectly and holding itat its edge. In this table, which is slightly convex, provision is madefor a central die plate which is adapted to move at right angles to itsplane and also produces a sucking action, the contour of said die platehaving approximately the shape of the desired wrapper. There is insertedbetween said movable die plate and the table acutting frame or bladewhose chamfered topedge comes level with the surface of the table. Whenthe tobacco leaf which is laid on the table is applied in close contacttherewith as a result of atmospheric pressure, the movable die platewithdraws below the normal level of the table whilst one or a number ofelastic rollers sweep the free surface of the leaf. The chamfered edgeof the cutting blade then shears the tobacco leaf along the desiredcontour. Thereupon, the movable die plate whichreturns in the directionopposite to that of its movement of withdrawal can transfer the wrapperwhich is thus formed to a conveying means which usually consists of asuction cup, the sucking action beneath said plate having meanwhile beendiscontinued.

The travel of the elastic rollers along the edge of the cutting blade isusually followed by the return motion of said rollers along the samepath to their initial positions and takes up a substantial proportion ofthe cycle of operation of the machine. Even if the frequency of thiscycle is partly determined by considerations other than the time takenup by the cutting operation andforming of the wrappers, any saving oftime in one of the unitary stages of such operations is appreciable, ifonly for the reason that the machine operator is thereby permitted toperfect the manual operations which still remain necessaryat the presenttime. The aim of this invention is therefore to shorten thewrapper-cutting stage and is attended by the following advantages:simplification of the mechanism which is necessary for this operation;suppression or spacing of regrinding operations performed on the cuttingframe; enhancement of personnel safety despite'the reduction ofprotective elements; reduction of amplitude of movement re uired of themachine operator; thereby permitting more careful and less tiring workeven at a higher production rate.

The present invention is primarily characterized in that, in a machineof the type which either prepares or utilizes wrapping products, theconventional mechanism which has the function of cuttin'gout a fragmentof predetermined shape from a leaf such as a tobacco leaf and whichworks by shearing between a cutting blade and a counterpart such asrollers is replaced by another mechanism which comprises means formodifying the tobacco leaf simply by coming into contact with the leafalong the desired cutting line, said means being adapted to produceaction without any counterpart on at least one of the faces of thetobacco leaf and to cooperate with means for holding said leaf in theoutspread position while producing action on at least a portion of theleaf surface which is located outside the zone of action of saidleaf-modifying means.

The holding means can comprise a table which is subjected to airpressure and the shape which is determined by the cutting line isinscribed within said table.

The table can be constituted by two parts of which an inner part isinscribed within the shape determined by the cutting line whilst theleaf-modifying means are adapted to produce action between said twoparts.

The leaf-modifying means are adapted to move between the two parts ofthe table.

The inner part of the-table can be movable. v

The leaf-modifying means can be constituted byan outer edge of a flatmetal plate which is brought to a high temperature and can be appliedagainst one face of the leaf.

The temperature referred to is preferably higher than 500C.

Heat-insulated electric resistors can be applied against at least one ofthe faces of the flat metal plate.

Only the zone of the flat metal plate corresponding to the outer edgewhich is employed as leaf-modifying means is not heat insulated.

The movement of very short duration which brings the leafmodifying meansinto action on the outspread tobacco leaf takes place shortly before themovement of the inner part of the table which brings the cut portion ofleaf away from the level of the outspread leaf.

These movements are controlled mechanically by the programming system ofthe machine.

The perforations of the table are arranged so as to effect the coolingof those portions which are located in the vicinity of the heatingelement.

One example of execution of a device in accordance with the inventionwill be given in reference to the cutting of wrapper leaves (outerleaves) on a cigar-making machine. It willbe understood thattheinvention can take many other forms, depending on the material employedand the articles being manufactured.

The example which now follows is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. l is a vertical sectional view of a device in accordance withtheinvention, thisview being taken along line l-I of FIG. 2;

. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device from which the inner part 15 ofthe table has been removed;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view ofa constructional detail;

FIGS. 4, Sand 6 are highly simplified diagrams showing the main parts ofthe device in the relative end positions.

There is mounted on the frame 11 of a cigar-wrapping machine theperforated casing 12 which serves to spread out and to hold the tobaccoleaf in position. Suction pipes such as the pipe 13 connect the space 14which is located-between the frame 11 and the casing 12 to a vacuumsource by means of through the pipe 17 with the vacuum source referredto above by means of a different flap which is controlled separately.

The space 16 is delimited by the die plate 15 and a body or mandrel 18which has an extension in the form of a cylindrical skirt 19. Themandrel 18 is attached to the drive shaft 20 by means'of screws or anysuitable fastening means. Said shaft 20 is adapted to slide verticallyunder the control of the programming system and through the intermediaryof a mechanical coupling system of known type. In FIG. 2, the die plate15 has been removed for the sake of enhanced clarity.

The cutting mechanism proper is indicated inFIGS. 1 and 2 by the'letterC and illustrated in detail in FIG. 3.

' Theessential component of the cutting unit is formed of specialhigh-temperature stainless steel such as the alloy known as NSMC whichis produced by the Ugine company, said component being maintained at atemperature of over 700C.by means of a special heating system. There canbe seen in this component the chamfer 31, the top edge of which followsin the plane of HO. 2 the contour of the wrapper leaf to be cut out, andthehe'el 32 to which the heat produced by the heating systemis directlyapplied. In the example shown,

the heating system is constituted by electric resistors 33 and calraised edge or flange 40 against which is applied a cover 41, thefunction of which is to limit heat losses resulting from transfer of theair which is sucked into the space 14. In addition, said support isfixed on the tubular shaft 21 which is concentric with the drive shaft20 of the central mandrel. The shaft 21 is adapted to slide within theframe 11 under the action of the programming system. Finally, there issecured to said support 39 a sleeve 22 which serves to guide themovement of said support within the frame 11 and, through theintermediary of the skirt 19, guides the movement of the mandrel 18while providing a communication between the space 16 and the suctiontube 17.

The relative positions of the main components are shown in FIGS. 4, Sand6, from which it is possible to follow-the different stages of operationof a mechanism in accordance with the invention. FIG. 4 shows themechanism at the moment when the tobacco-leaf is being laid in position.The cutting unit C is in the lowermost position and its top edge islocated below the plane of the die platel5. The machine operator istherefore not exposed to any risk of burns. The leaf-is applied againstthe casing 12 and die plate 15 as a result of suction of air through thetubes 13 and 17 and die plate 15 and is maintained thereon throughoutthe remaining sequence of operations.

In FIG. 5 as in FIG. 1, the cutting unit which is thrust upwards by theshaft 20 is shown to be in the operative position. The top edge of theportion 31 of unit C projects to a slight extent above the level of thedie plate 15 which has remained in its initial position. A processoflocal and practically linear carbonization of the tobacco leaf thentakes place along the contour of the cutting edge, with the result thata wrapping element of requisite size is cut out from the leaf. It shouldbe noted that, by operating at the temperature which has been indicatedearlier and, more generally, between 600 and 800C, it is merelynecessary to apply the cutting unit C against a leaf of natural tobaccofor a very short time in order to separate the central portion from theremainder of the leaf. In the case of the fine leaves which are selectedfor cigar wrappers, the time of application can, for example, be of theorder of onetenth of a second whereas, in the conventional process whichconsists in shearing between rollers and a cutting blade, the time ofapplication usually varies between 1 and 2 seconds. it is thus readilyapparent that an appreciable saving of time is thus achieved by means ofa mechanism which has a further advantage in that it is lighter inweight.

Should the operation be performed at higher temperatures, for exampletemperatures which are well in excess of 800C, it is not necessary toensure that the cutting unit should come into actual contact with thetobacco leaf in order to produce the requisite leaf modification. Inthis instance, the unit can remain ashort distance below the leaf, inwhich case the carbonization process takes place by radiancy. Byadopting this mode of operation, fouling and oxidation of the heatingedge are prevented.

Immediately upon completion of the cutting operation, the

suction can be stopped within the tubes 15 while still maintaining apartial vacuum within the space 17 by means of the tube 17. The cuttingunit C moves down to its initial bottom position and the shaft 20 liftsthe mandrel 18 and the die plate 15 which carries the cut out wrapper upto the position shown in FIG. 6. A conveyingsuction cup then takes thecut wrapper which is carried by the die plate 15 in the known manner.Meanwhile, suction from the space 16 is discontinued. The mechanism isthen in readiness for cutting out a fresh wrapper leaf.

It should be pointed out that the operations which consist in spreadingout and then holding the leaf against the casing 12 and die plate 15 bypneumatic means make it possible to maintain these surfaces at atemperature which is wholly compatible both with safety of personnel andwith conservation of the material being processed in spite of theproximity of heated components. it is also possible without therebyentailing any disadvantage to modify the perforations or holes which areformed in t ese surfaces as well as the suction cycle so as to ensureenhanced efficiency of the air-cooling system.

A large number'of alternative forms ofexecution of the invention mayevidently be comtemplated. The example which has just been given has theadvantages of being readily adaptable to existing machines, ofsimplifying the usual cutting systems and of reducing maintenance to aconsiderable extent. However, other arrangements could be found moreeffective in machines of novel design, especially in regard to theutilization of the cut wrappers, while remaining within the scope ofthis invention.

1 claim:

l. A device for cutting the wrapper leaves of cigars, cigaril los, orlike products, comprising a support, a perforated table mounted on saidsupport for receiving a leaf in the outspread position, said table andsaid support delimiting a cavity there between, first means connectingsaid cavity with a source of vacuum for holding said leaf in saidoutspread position, second means mounted within said cavity forimpairing the material of said leaf along a desired cutting line, andcutaway 4. A device according to claim 2, wherein said inner part of thetable is movable.

5. A device according to claim 4, wherein a vertically movable shaft isarranged for a movement of very short duration, said movement bringingsaid second means into action on said outspread leaf shortly before themovement of said inner part of said table carrying the cut portion ofleaf away from the level of said outspread leaf.

